Utterly captivating arrangements of music by these masters.

The world knows Bela Bartok as one of the twentieth century's great composers. Fewer people know of the many miniature masterpieces he composed for young musicians, and even fewer realize that he was a brilliant and diligent scholar of Eastern European folk music. Working 50 years before the term was even coined, he is now considered one of the first great ethnomusicologists, in addition to his formidable compositional achievements. In 1905, shortly after his first contacts with the "pure" music of Hungarian peasants, Bartok met Zoltan Kodaly, a fellow Hungarian composer one year his junior, who was also deeply interested in authentic folk music. Together they founded the Hungarian Music Society and they collaborated in collecting and editing Hungarian folksongs for publication. Close friends throughout their lives, they often performed and championed each other's music. The performers on this recording have endeavored to be true to the original spirit of the music of Bartok and Kodaly in arranging for the group. Sometimes these arrangements have a comparatively logical quality, such as Bartok's Rumanian Dances played by a folk band with cimbalom, whistles and recorders, guitars, banjo and bass. In other cases the sounds are more unusual, such as the arrangement of Kodaly's Ave Maria for voice and low pennywhistles.

Review:

"This is a lovely and lovingly-produced CD. Purists won't like it, for the musicians gave themselves a free hand with the arrangements. Altering the original orchestration gives the music a certain freshness and folksiness. Soprano Julianne Baird's contributions are stunning - but everyone is first-rate on this highly-recommended recording." (American Record Guide)